Singing Lessons
by Bella Lyn
Summary: Christine Daae is a student at prestigious boarding school for the arts; Springmore. Erik Destler is a singing instructor at the school. When they meet, Erik realizes that he needs her in his life, but can she come to the same realization in time?
1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note: **This story is based off of another story I had started (also called Singing Lessons) that I deleted. I did not like the direction it was going in and I had new ideas that will appear in this story, but would not have fit in with the other. This story will actually be quite different from the previous "Singing Lessons", so if you are reading this one expecting the same thing... sorry. Not that the general idea isn't changed, I'm telling you right now that Christine and Erik belong together, and in my story they will end up together, but the manner in which they come together has changed. I just wanted to point that out to any fans of the previous "Singing Lessons" reading this.

**Important note: **This story is rated T for a reason. I'm not big on sex scenes, and other than the very basics, I will not go into detail, it's just not my style of writing, so you don't have to worry about that. HOWEVER, this story's plot is based on student/teacher romances, or at least a romance between two people of very different ages (Erik is obviously a bit older than Christine). I promise not to make the story creepy in any way, but if you don't go for the age difference thing at all (again, it's not going to be a massive age difference) than I suggest not reading this. If you don't mind too much however, I promise the story should be good... so give it a try! PLEASE!

**Disclaimer: **I obviously don't own any of the Phantom characters, blah blah blah...please don't sue me, I will deny everything :)

* * *

Erik Destler sat at the bench of the gleaming mahogany piano and watched the three singers onstage with a grim expression on his face. He had been practicing with the teenagers for well over three hours, and after listening to them continuously croak out the songs to the musical they were rehearsing, he had decided that he had been through enough for one day.

With a sudden gesture, Erik brought his right fist down onto the piano keys, producing a sharp, unpleasant sound of jumbled notes. The singers eyes darted over to the left side of the stage, surprised by the noise their instructor had made, but Erik ignored their looks and simply said, "Until the three of you can learn to sing together and produce a sound that _doesn't _sound like a cat being run over, we are through."

He wished what he said were true, that they wouldn't practice again until they could sing, but he and the students knew that they had rehearsals again tomorrow, whether they sounded better or not. _For their sake though, _Erik thought bitterly, _they had better sound better. _

Erik watched the sullen teenagers walk off the stage, and head towards the back of the auditorium, passing by a few girls who seemed to belong to the ballet class. Erik glanced at his watch and realized that he had stopped rehearsal just in time, the ballerinas were scheduled to practice in ten minutes.

_Well, it's all for the best then, _he thought.

Erik was the singing instructor at a private boarding school called Springmore, dedicated to the performing arts. He himself was completely obsessed with anything to do with music, including singing, instruments, etc. One thing he did not openly support however was dancing.

He understood the beauty in it of course, but why would you want to dance to music when you could create it? Of course, there was the slight chance that he was biased, not that he would admit it.

Erik would normally have walked back to his room around this time after his rehearsals. As a teacher at Springmore, he had been given a choice between living off campus, or living on campus with the students and a few random faculty members. At the time of his employment, Erik had no money, so of course it had been an easy choice; he would live on campus. He stayed in his room most of the time anyway, so the fact that students lived on the grounds as well did not bother him.

Erik was preparing to head out of the auditorium and go home, but the dejected feelings he had left over from his failed rehearsal came sinking in, and he wanted nothing more than to sit down. He didn't even want to walk home yet, it just required too much energy, and he was most definitely _not_ energetic right now.

Instead, Erik opted to take a seat in the back of the room, partly immersed in shadows, and watch the rehearsals currently beginning onstage for the ballerinas. The ballet department at the school was small, only a select few girls were chosen to be in the group each year. Five total were part of the group this year, one of the smallest groups yet, as far as Erik could remember.

The ballerinas were rehearsing for the same event Erik's singers had been; the musical.

The musical was a tradition at the school. Every year a different one was performed to showcase the students work of the year. Not that all the students in the school got to be a part of it. There were class requirements, and very difficult auditions that must be overcome before a student was allowed to perform in the musical. It was generally said that only the best students in Springmore were the ones to perform.

Erik's head was clouded by thoughts of the work he would need to do still to prepare the singers, but he shook it off as he noticed the five girls onstage begin to get into formation, he was curious as to how their work was progressing thus far.

He studied the girls carefully, starting with the three in the back. He noticed that they were all average looking, but also, they reminded him of the reason he disliked the ballerinas. They were all catty looking girls, the type that stared at themselves in compact mirrors all day, and gossiped about their best friend behind their back. He turned away in disgust.

He then looked at the two girls in the front. One girl he noticed resembled Barbara Giry, the ballet teacher. She had blond hair the same shade, and she seemed to have the same build. Erik figured the girl must be Giry's daughter, whom he knew attended the school.

The girl next to her soon captured his attention.

She was of slightly above average height with very long slender legs that were very obviously perfect for ballet. She was very thin in her waist and arms, but her hips and bust were curvy, causing her body to become perfectly balanced and proportional, if not stunning. Her face was even more remarkable though. She had a mouth the color of stained berries, and Erik couldn't help but wonder whether she ate a lot of strawberries. Her lips were plump and slightly upturned, making it seem as though she were smiling. Her nose was very tiny, and the end was also upturned, but not overly so... it looked very cute actually. Erik could not clearly see her eyes, given the distance he was from the stage, but he could tell they were blue, and startlingly so, considering he could clearly see their color from such a distance! Erik's eyes drifted up towards her hair that was impossible to miss. It was obvious she had very curly hair. Even though her hair was tied up in a bun to dance Erik could see little tendrils and ringlets falling out. The color was a very deep chestnut with little gold strands that would catch the light every time she moved her head. Her skin was very fair, and exceptionally clear, giving her an evanescent look, almost like a porcelain doll.

Erik was enraptured by her beauty. She was breathtaking! He had never seen anyone as gorgeous as she, and certainly not a teenager! For heaven's sake, if she was this beautiful now, what would she look like as an adult?! One thing was for sure, she would definitely have many admirers, he reasoned.

He glanced back up at her face, and was struck by something else. She was not like her catty, gossiping peers. He hadn't met her of course, but there was something in the expression of her face, the way she looked around her, seemed as though she were above the giggles the other girls let out... she was different. _Different in a good way though, the best way, _Erik thought to himself.

He watched the girl begin to dance along with the other four, but he had forgotten about them. They ceased to exist. As far as he was concerned, this girl was the only person onstage, and he was the only other person in the room.

He was struck once again by her, as he watched her dance he couldn't help but notice her grace, much like his own he would like to believe. She seemed to float across the stage as if she were born to do it, which when he thought about it, made sense. She was other worldly.

Erik nearly jumped out of his skin when he heard the door next to him open with a loud squeak, and then slam shut of its own accord as someone walked down the aisle to the stage.

Erik saw that it was Barbara Giry, or Madame Giry as the students called her. He hadn't even realized that she wasn't there leading the rehearsal. He decided that now would be a good time to leave, as he certainly didn't want to explain his presence to the ever meddlesome Giry.

With the grace he had compared to the girl, he rose from his seat, left the auditorium, and stepped into the night, all without making a sound.

...

Christine Daae had been attending Springmore boarding school since she was 12 years old. A difficult feat considering most students started at around 14 or 15, since it was a high school.

Christine had been a special case though for two different reasons. The first being that, she was an exceptional student and performer.

She had been home schooled most of her life, starting in the first grade, and her parents dedication to her education, and her natural willingness and ability to learn, had pushed her several years ahead of her peers. She had already gone through most of the high school curriculum by the summer she had turned 11. Not that she had learnt it all, but she was sufficient and well read in most subjects.

While this sounded extraordinary to everyone else, to Christine it was to be expected. Her parents were both college professors who had been teaching her everything they could since she was a baby.

Christine had also been studying ballet very seriously since she had been 4. She had performed all across the country, traveling with her parents and studying on the road.

It had been a very productive and studious household.

Christine made friends very easily, as she seemed to be the type of person that could get along with anyone, and everyone loved her, so she always had friends around the neighborhood although she was home schooled. However, Christine could not have cared less if she had 100 or 0 friends. She was perfectly happy with the company of her two parents.

Growing up, they had been the two people she could always rely on, the people that lived to see her happy. They were her teachers, her supporters, her fans when she was performing, and her best friends. She loved her parents very much, and relied on them for everything...until she turned 12.

That was the second reason Christine attended Springmore boarding school. Her parents had both died in a car crash two weeks after she turned 12 years old. The wreckage had been so bad that police officials were unable to determine who the passengers of the car were until they did a thorough examination. Christine had been devastated; it was the end of the life she knew and loved.

She had also been scared. She knew of no family members that could take care of her, and she felt very alone. Luckily, a friend of her father's, Barbara Giry, had taken Christine into her home.

Within a week, Barbara had seen that Christine was more than competent to begin training with the school despite her age, and she enrolled Christine along with her own daughter Meg, whom Christine had grown quite attached to.

For four years, Christine had been learning more and more about ballet, acting, and piano, all of which were part of the curriculum at her school. She and Meg had become best friends, and were rarely seen apart, although they both had many other friends as well.

Every year, Christine was accepted into the very selective ballet department, along with Meg (although Meg hadn't made it the first year) and every year, Christine had to be a part of the annual musical.

It wasn't that she didn't want to be a part of it, she loved to perform, but the rehearsals were long and very demanding.

One night after a particularly long practice, Christine was left sitting on the stage rubbing her feet. The rest of the ballerinas had scurried off to their dorm rooms to sleep. Despite her exhaustion, Christine had wanted to stay. She loved having the auditorium to herself at night. It was peaceful to be onstage by herself and be able to dance freely, away from the instruction and criticism of Madame Giry and the rest of the ballerinas.

Christine glanced at the clock on the wall opposite her and saw that it was exactly 11:11. She smiled to herself as she thought of all the times Meg had told her to make a wish when it was 11:11, apparently your wish would come true or something. Christine was tired though, and she honestly couldn't think of anything to wish for, so she let it slide.

She began putting her ballet shoes on again, deciding that this would probably be the only time she would have the stage to herself, so she might as well dance. She stood up and began to twirl on her toes, already warmed up from the practice earlier. She went to do a first arabesque, which involved bringing her leg back and high into the air, but she couldn't find the motivation she needed. She was clearly too tired to dance tonight, it was a lost cause.

Feeling dejected, she sat down again to remove her ballet slippers and replace them with the Mary Jane high heels she wore that day. Those too were a mistake for her sore feet, but she hardly cared anymore, and she wasn't about to wak back to her dorm shoeless.

Christine let her mind wander as she packed up her belongings, and she found herself focusing on an old memory of her mother singing her a lullaby when she was young. Her mother had been a very good singer, and she often sang old sad sounding folk songs to Christine. The particular one she was thinking of was one of her favorites, very sad, but also truly beautiful.

Christine missed her mother so much at that moment, but she didn't want to give into the tears that she could feel threatening to escape. They would only make her weak, and right now particularly, when she was already so tired, she did not want to feel any weaker. Instead, she started humming the lullaby to herself in an effort to soothe herself.

She loved music, and it was evident now as she got caught up in the beautiful melody that threaded its way through her vocal chords. She longed to sing it out loud, and for a second was self conscious, but upon looking around at the empty seats surrounding her, she took a breath and started singing the once forgotten words. She didn't pride herself on being a wonderful singer (not that she was awful, she just didn't think she was great) but at that moment she didn't care, she was free onstage and no one was there to see her.

Or so she thought.

...

It had been a week since Erik had watched the ballet rehearse. Or to be exact, since watching _Christine _rehearse.

He had been determined to learn the girl's name after being so struck by her in so many different ways, that he had risked getting in trouble by his boss to look up her name in the files. He had not had time to look at the rest of her file for he had heard someone coming, and he wasn't supposed to be there, but he had gotten what he came for; her name.

Erik was heading for the auditorium. It was 11:15 at night, and he knew the place would be empty.

He enjoyed going there at nights when the rest of the campus was asleep or at least not working. He prided himself on being a talented piano player (some would even say he was a genius at the instrument) and he would go to compose and play on the school's beautiful mahogany piano. He would have liked of course to have a piano of his own, but dorm rooms provided little space for a baby grand piano much less a grand one.

Regardless, Erik was just opening the doors to the auditorium, quietly of course, as was his way, when he was stopped in his tracks by a voice so beautiful, he doubted it was real.

He looked down at the stage where the sound of the voice was coming from, and he had to do a double take when he saw who was standing right in the center.

_Christine Daae!_

She was so caught up with her song, that he didn't want to bother her, plus he wanted to hear more, so he sunk into the shadows of the last row, and silently sat in an uncomfortable, poorly upholstered chair.

He felt himself go numb with pleasure at the sound her voice made when she hit a high note. She was superb! Better than that, she was... he couldn't even find a word, his brain had stopped forming coherent thoughts.

The sound of her voice drifted over him, and surrounded him in such a gentle yet demanding way. _Did she know she was this good? Did anyone other than him know she was this good? _

He highly doubted it, otherwise he would probably be coaching her for the musical right now, and she would be in more singing classes.

He was so immersed in his thoughts and her voice that he almost didn't hear her stop. She had though, and it seemed that she was packing her things to leave.

He glanced at the clock, and saw it was half past midnight. _Has it really been that long? _he thought, amazed that it had only felt like 5 minutes.

His desire to play the piano had completely left him, as had all other rational thought. All he could think about was her and the beautiful voice she had. He had thought that she was perfect before when she was just a dancer, but this, this had bumped her up to goddess status!

He felt like he should bow down to her, but at the same time, he had to keep himself hidden in the shadows as she walked up the center aisle and out the door.

Once she had gone, Erik sat in his uncomfortable chair for a while, his thoughts on nothing but her.


	2. Chapter 2

**Author's Note: **This chapter is going to be a little shorter, just because I want to get this part out of the way. Next chapter will be longer...I promise. Nothing else to say here... I hope you enjoy!

**Let's play a game of Simon says; Simon says REVIEW!... do it NOW!**

* * *

The next day, Erik sat again at the shiny piano, rehearsing with the singers in the musical. This time though, he was in a better mood than they had ever seen him.

Or at least he had been in a good mood when he came into the auditorium.

Erik's thoughts were not on the singers at all...well they were on one singer, but she wasn't standing onstage with him, in fact, he didn't know where Christine was. He had spent the rest of the night before trying to recreate the sound of her voice in his head, and while he felt that he could almost hear it, he knew that his memory was nothing like the real sound of her voice.

Regardless, Erik had woken up the next day feeling hopeful and content. Just thinking about her put him in a good mood. He could already see an attachment growing.

He was playing the notes on the piano lazily, listening to the students warm up with his accompaniment. Suddenly, he was pulled from his cheerful mood, and thrown into a sour disposition when he heard one sound... _the sound of_ _Carlotta's voice._

Carlotta Ranciada was one of the three singers that Erik rehearsed with daily. She was a junior in the school, and believed that she was the greatest singer that had ever lived. The truth was, that while she had a good range, her vocals were croaky and screechy, and altogether not good.

Unfortunately for Erik, she had passed the auditions into the musical, mainly based on the fact that her father paid a lot of extra money towards the school, and Erik was stuck with her.

He knew that with the way she had been singing lately, they might not be ready in time for the musical. She just wasn't improving.

Erik dismissed the singers, once again disappointed in their lack of talent, and stared glumly down at the piano keys. He needed to find a new singer to take the place of Carlotta's role, or the musical was going to sound awful!

Just then, Erik heard the door at the back of the auditorium open and close gently. He looked up, expecting to see Madame Giry who would be leading the ballet rehearsal scheduled for this time, but instead he saw Christine Daae enter with Giry's daughter.

Erik's bad mood was blown away as he watched Christine walk gracefully down the aisle towards the stage. Neither of the girls seemed to notice Erik, as they were engaged in a lively conversation, so Erik took the opportunity to jump back into the shadows to watch unnoticed. He edged along the side of the stage, and down the stairs opposite the girls, heading for a seat in the back where the shadows were the darkest.

Once seated, Erik took the chance to evaluate Christine unseen.

She was wearing the school uniform which consisted of a pleated skirt in gray, and a white blouse. She wore gray Mary Jane high heels, and her curly hair was half up, tied back with a pink ribbon. She looked charming as always.

Neither of the girls were dressed to dance, and Erik assumed they must have come from classes. They went backstage with bags in hand, and came back minutes later, both in black leotards and pink stockings. Erik then watched as Christine sat on the edge of the stage gracefully and tied her ballet slippers. He also watched as she removed the ribbon from her hair to tie it up in a bun. In those few minutes of her hair down, Erik could tell for sure that Christine had the most beautiful curls he had ever seen. Despite their volume, they seemed to frame her face perfectly when down.

Within ten minutes, the rest of the ballet department had arrived, including Madame Giry, and practice had begun. Erik was so engrossed in watching Christine, that his thoughts didn't drift back to his own problems until the ballerinas were taking off their shoes and packing up to go home.

Then it struck Erik. _Christine was one of the best singers he had ever heard, and she hadn't even been trained. What if she took Carlotta's spot?!_

Erik was so excited by this idea that he completely forgot about Christine's commitment to the ballet portion of the musical. He could only think of one thing... Christine must be his. His to train, and to teach, and to mold into the perfect singer... and he would have her.

He slipped out of the auditorium after everyone else had left, and headed for Madame Giry's house that was located on the campus. He knew what he had to do.

...

Erik arrived at the house within minutes, fueled by his excitement and eagerness to talk with the woman.

Normally, he made it a habit to avoid other staff and faculty, Barbara Giry in particular. While it was true that she was probably the closest thing he had to a friend on the campus with one exception, she was also the most meddlesome woman he had ever met, and he knew this discussion could be very difficult.

Erik took a deep breath, and rang the doorbell of the small two story house.

His sensitive ears picked up movement within, and seconds later, Barbara Giry was opening the door.

"Erik!" Giry exclaimed, "what on earth are you doing here so late?"

"Madame" Erik greeted coolly. He was never one for pleasantries. "I would like to talk with you about one of your students."

"One of the ballerinas? Whatever for?" asked Giry in a calmer tone, ushering Erik into the sitting room.

Erik took a moment to situate himself on a hard backed chair in the corner of the room, after eyeing the lumpy sofa and moving past it. He waited until Barbara had done the same before beginning.

"It has come to my attention that one of your dancers is an exceptional singer. While that may not mean much to you," Erik started eyeing her with slight contempt, "to me it holds great importance. I trust you have heard of the lack of progress the singers are making on the musical?"

Madame Giry slowly nodded her head, making sure not to insult Erik. She had heard rumors from other instructors at Springmore that the singers this year were looking less than promising, but she hadn't been sure how much of the rumors had been true.

Erik took her nod as a signal to keep going. "Obviously with the singers being as poor as they are, I am looking to make a few changes. I have been looking for a new lead female voice, and I believe I have found it in your ballet group."

Madame Giry eyed Erik skeptically. She did not support him taking one of her ballerinas and turning them into a singing diva. "Which girl, sir?" she asked politely.

"Christine Daae." Erik replied, straining to make himself sound detached and uninterested in the girl, other than her voice. He could see Madame Giry grow upset when he said Christine's name.

"You want Christine to be the lead singer? But why?! When have you ever heard her sing?" Barbara asked, worried that her best dancer besides her own daughter was going to be pulled from the group.

"Madame, the when is not as important as the why, and the why is because she is exactly the kind of talent the world deserves to hear. Have you ever heard her sing?" Erik asked boldly.

Giry blanched. Of course she hadn't heard Christine sing. Christine was such a quiet girl as it was, and she was a dancer! Since when had she been interested in singing?

"No sir, I have not, but if she were so interested in singing, then why hasn't she signed up for singing lessons? What makes you think that she would want to do this?" she finished.

Erik hadn't prepared for this. He knew there would be some hesitation on Giry's part, it was only to be expected, but why did he think Christine would want to be a singer anyways? He thought about it, picturing Christine on the stage singing that beautifully sad song.

"Madame, you are right that she has not been interested in singing before now, and maybe she doesn't believe that she is a good singer, and what with her being so good at dance, there is no need for her to switch to singing. However, I can assure you, if you had seen the look on her face while she sang, the complete joy and peace that she seemed to feel, you would know that she wants to sing." Erik said feeling empowered.

Barbara Giry just looked at Erik in shock. The whole situation was bizarre! When had he seen Christine sing, and why did he feel so strongly about it? Then again, if he thought that Christine truly felt that way, then what was the risk in at least talking with Christine about it?

"Alright Erik, if you feel that strongly, then you can talk with Christine about it. I'm not guaranteeing that she will agree, after all she has been dancing since she can remember, but I will set up a meeting and the three of us can discuss it."

"Good," Erik said gruffly. He did not want to let his emotions show, but inside he was very excited about this turn of events. "Contact me when you have a meeting scheduled."

"Yes, yes," muttered Madame Giry distractedly. She was deep in her own thoughts, and watched as Erik rose from his seat. She led him to the door, and said goodbye to her bizarre friend.

She walked back into her living room, glaring at the chair Erik had been sitting in as if it had personally offended her.

Shaking her head resignedly, she walked from the room, and went upstairs to her office to work out a time for a meeting between herself, Erik, and poor Christine Daae.


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer: **I don't own anything...yada yada yada

**Author's Note: **I have nothing to say other than, I hope you are enjoying it, and I hope you will review to tell me whether or not you like it!

* * *

The next day was a Saturday, and Erik was walking the grounds of Springmore campus in an exceptionally good mood. There were two reasons for this mood.

1) Erik did not have rehearsals today with his miserable singers

2) Madame Giry had contacted Erik that morning saying that she, Erik, and Christine could meet that night at six in the office above the auditorium.

It went without saying that this was a very good day for Erik.

After strolling around for a little while, he walked into the area of the campus that resembled a park. There were three benches that were very long, able to fit 20 people each, and Erik sat down somewhere on the left side on one facing the library.

He pulled the newspaper he had bought that morning out of his coat pocket, and started to read, enjoying the bright sunshine and fresh air.

Occasionally, Erik would look up from his paper in between articles and look around, and it just so happens that in between an article about a local hero, and the funds needed for a local church, Erik happened to glance up and see none other than Christine exiting the library and walking in Erik's direction!

All focus Erik had on the newspaper before was gone. He watched now as Christine came closer, and closer, and closer, until finally he watched as she took a seat on the same bench as him, about 10 feet down!

Erik couldn't believe his luck...or misfortune, depending.

The truth was with Erik, he had been in a terrible accident when he was a baby, so severe in fact, that the whole right side of his face was a mass of twisted, discolored, misshapen flesh. Erik's mother could hardly stand the sight of him, let alone anyone else, and for that reason, Erik had many issues throughout his life, involving friends, jobs, and such.

One result of these issues was that Erik was forced to wear a mask on the side of his face with the deformity, in order to cover it up. When he was younger the mask was a stark white color that more often than not scared people away.

As he grew older, and became more involved with the theatre business, Erik discovered that skin colored masks, if manufactured to match his skin tone perfectly, did a decent job of hiding his face while still allowing him to interact with people. Unfortunately though, Erik did not let people get too close to him emotionally because he was wary of their reaction when they discovered that he was a monster beneath the mask.

Two of the only people that had ever accepted Erik in his life, deformity and all, were conveniently living on campus with him. Madame Giry was one, although he hardly thought of her as a friend considering her meddlesome nature that truly irked him. She had seen his face accidentally years ago, and she had been decent enough to see past it.

The second person, Erik's only true friend, was Nadir Kahn. Nadir was the head of security as Springmore, and he had known Erik for years, although their history was not something they liked to relive.

Therefore, due to the mask and all of the issues underlying it, Erik was wary of having Christine close, but he also was excited that he would get to see her outside of ballet rehearsals.

As it were, Christine was opening a book that Erik assumed she had just got from the library, and she was settling down to read. Erik glanced at the title, assuming it would be some trashy teenage novel, but he was pleasantly surprised when he saw she was reading Wuthering Heights.

_Smart, beautiful, and talented...quite a dangerous combination, _Erik mused to himself.

He looked away from Christine and back down to his newspaper, when he felt his nose start to tickle. He scratched it, but the sensation wouldn't go away... he was about to sneeze!

_Ah...ah...AH-CHOU! _

He sniffled a little and looked back down to his paper, when he heard the most beautiful voice say "Bless you".

He looked up, and saw that Christine was smiling at him kindly, clearly being the one that spoke. Hesitantly he replied, "Thank you,"

Christine had already looked back down before he spoke, but when he replied she looked back up and said, "You're welcome."

He officially loved her smile. It was gorgeous! She should smile all the time... although when he thought about it, that might be a little creepy.

Their little transaction was over, but Erik couldn't help the urge he had to continue talking to her, to hear her voice again if nothing else. Unfortunately, he couldn't think of anything to say that wouldn't be creepy, and so, remembering that he had a meeting with her and Giry tonight anyway, he folded up his paper and walked off towards his room.

...

By six o'clock, Erik was already sitting in the office with his legs crossed and his fingers folded. He was a stickler for punctuality.

Two minutes later, Giry and Christine walked into the room together, Christine looking very nervous as though she thought she were in trouble for something but couldn't think of what.

The two ladies greeted Erik, Madame Giry a little coolly as though she were angry with Erik, and Christine friendly, as she recognized him from earlier in the park.

Madame Giry turned towards Christine and began the meeting.

"Christine dear, Mr. Destler here asked me to bring you so that he could talk to you about the musical." Giry began.

Christine's face relaxed visibly, although she was still clearly confused.

Erik jumped in. "I would like to propose that you become the lead female vocalist in the musical," he said, getting straight to the point. Erik was nothing if not blunt.

Christine had a look on her face that clearly read, "am I in a room with crazy people?" but Erik decided to push forward and explain the situation.

"I guess I should tell you that I was in the auditorium a few nights ago when you were singing onstage," Erik continued.

"I had come in to play piano, but I heard your voice and I thought you were spectacular, although clearly untrained."

Christine's face was pure red, whether she was more embarrassed at being heard, or being called "clearly untrained", Erik couldn't tell.

"You may know that the singers this year are doing less than admirably, and what I would like to do, is to have you become the lead singer, because I believe that with you, the musical will sound better than it ever has." Erik finished. All he had to do now was wait for things to process in Christine's head.

After a few seconds, the look of shock on Christine's face wore off.

"Let me get this straight," she said hesitantly. "You want me to drop ballet, and become the lead singer in the musical, just because you heard me sing a few nights ago?"

Erik was a little taken aback. She wasn't as helpless as she looked, and although she had not been rude, she definitely didn't seem to be thrilled over the idea.

"I think, you underestimate the power your voice has. It was easily one of the best voices I have ever heard, and with proper training, you could be the best singer this school has ever seen! And yes, you would not be able to perform the ballet parts in the musical since you would be singing at the same time, but you would still get the credit for being on the team, and you could still practice and what not." Erik struggled to explain it all.

Madame Giry interrupted noticing the look on Christine's face. "My dear, Mr. Destler is merely pointing out the opportunity you could take. He believes you could be a wonderful singer, but we already know you are a wonderful dancer, so the choice is up to you. If you have no interest in singing, then you can most certainly turn down the offer, but it would be a good opportunity if you are interested."

"Thank you for that_, Madame_," Erik said through clenched teeth. He really wanted Christine to accept this offer, but she looked torn.

"Sir, no offence but I don't think I'm that great a singer. Aren't there people who take choir that would be better... suited for the role?" Christine replied timidly, her thoughts racing.

Erik softened. It really seemed like her self doubt was what was holding her back, after all, he had seen the look on her face when she sang, and based on that, she loved it.

"I wouldn't lie to you Christine, you would be perfect for the role. I think with proper training, your voice could be superb." Erik said gently.

Christine's bright blue eyes flickered with something Erik hoped was excitement as he said this.

"If I were to do this, than what exactly would I need to do in order to get ready for the musical?" Christine asked, biting her lip.

Erik was entranced by the cute habit she seemed to do when nervous. He caught onto what she was getting at though, and was excited they were making progress.

"Well, you would have daily rehearsals with me in the auditorium with the other singers like you do for ballet, and then I think in order to catch you up and work on your technique, we would meet four times a week before those rehearsals just you and me."

"That would still allow you to practice with the ballet if you wanted to dear," Madame Giry added gently, seeing that Christine liked the idea of singing but hated to leave her dancing behind.

Giry and Erik watched Christine carefully as she thought over everything.

Two minutes later she looked up into their faces. "Madame, I love ballet, I truly do, and I would still love to practice with you, but I have always loved to sing, and if Mr. Destler thinks I could do well at it, than I really want to take advantage of that." Christine said with a large smile.

Erik released a breath he didn't realize he had been holding. Inwardly he was jumping up and down, but on the outside he simply smiled and said, "Welcome to the Musical... as a singer."

Christine smiled a little to herself at this.

"The ballet department will be there waiting after the musical dear, and I'm glad that you will have this opportunity," Madame Giry said with a small sad smile.

After discussing times of the rehearsals, and when Christine should meet with Erik to rehearse privately, the group split up, each heading towards their own homes and each feeling differently.

Erik was excited beyone belief, for the musical, for the new talent he discovered, and for the chance to spend time with the wonder that was Christine.

Madame Giry was happy for Christine, but sad that the ballet would lose their best dancer.

And Christine... Christine was nervous beyond belief at the sudden change her life had taken within the span on 20 minutes.

Regardless the three went to bed that night thinking of what Monday and the new rehearsals would hold.


	4. Chapter 4

**Author's Note: **I'm so sorry that it has taken me this long to update! I have been a little preoccupied with my other stories, so as much as I love this one, I put it on the back burner for a little while. Anyways, I'm back, and I have the whole story planned out, so get ready!

Please start reviewing and tell me what you think!

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Monday rolled around quickly, much to Erik's delight, and before he knew it, he was walking to the auditorium to warm up with Christine.

They had decided that since it was her first day of practice as a singer, they would just start out with a private warm up instead of a full-blown lesson.

Once inside, Erik saw that Christine was already onstage, pacing nervously. He smirked a little to himself and walked forward and onto the stage until he was right behind her.

He gently placed his hand on her shoulder and chuckled quietly when she jumped in surprise.

"Nervous?" he asked ironically.

Christine's eyes lit up with warmth, and her face colored with embarrassment.

"Um no," she coughed into her hand. "Whatever gave you that impression?"

"Well, it could be the new track marks you have made on the floor," Erik said with a straight face.

Christine looked down to the floor as her face flushed once again. "Oh, right." she mumbled.

Erik walked over to the piano, already enjoying himself, and sat down with a flourish.

He watched as Christine timidly walked over to the side of the piano to join him and wait for instruction.

"The first thing I would like to begin with are scales. I trust you know what those are?" Erik said, hovering his fingers over the keys in anticipation.

Christine nodded her head in the affirmative, and they began.

She was a little shaky at first, not always able to follow the scale perfectly, but Erik was once again struck by the quality and pureness of her voice. His mind wandered with visions of how perfect her voice would be in time.

After she had improved her scales, Erik moved on to exercises that would help her pronunciation when singing.

Christine did well on these, only getting tongue-tied once in a while.

Erik allowed her to get a drink of water to soothe her voice when he noticed that there were five minutes until real practice began. Christine walked over to the edge of the stage where her bag was, and bent down to get her water bottle when she hesitated.

She stood back up and looked at Erik shyly. After she seemed to muster her courage, she cleared her voice and said, "Mr. Destler, can I ask you something?"

Erik was a little startled by the forwardness in her voice, considering how shy she seemed, but he nodded his head anyway.

"Well, I was just, that is, I just wanted to know, erg," Christine took a calming breath, "I guess what I'm asking you is if you think I can actually do this. You heard me warming up just now, I'm sure I don't even compare to the people who have been singing in the choir. I don't belong up here as a singer."

Erik watched as Christine hung her head. He walked over until he stood two feet in front of her.

"Christine listen to me, I'm not lying to you when I tell you that you are better than these singers. They may have the training and experience, but you have the raw talent, and they are nothing compared to you when it comes to that. If you really want this, than all you have to do is work at it, and I promise, you will be ten times better than any of them." Erik said sincerely.

Christine looked up again at this speech. Her eyes seemed to fill up with emotion, but she wasn't about to cry.

Erik could sense an understanding between the two of them. Christine seemed a lot stronger than he had originally given her credit for, but she had a lot of self doubt issues. He would have to find out what the cause of those were.

As they stood on the stage, Erik heard the back door swing open, and he knew practice had begun.

After all the singers had assembled on-stage, Erik made the introductions.

"I want to introduce the three of you to Christine Daae, the new singer joining us. Some of you may know her from the ballet department, or your other classes, but she comes to us as a singer. In fact, I would like to switch around a few places." This was said by Erik in a way that made it sound off-handed, but the truth was, this was the part Erik had been looking forward to all weekend.

"Carlotta, you have been doing wonderfully in the role of Arabella," _not, _"however, I think your voice might be better suited for the role of Dylan. Christine, I think you will do well as Arabella."

Erik could see the anger written across Carlotta's face plain as day.

"Dylan is a boy's part!" Carlotta screeched indignantly.

"Well yes, but we had no one to play it before, and now we do. Just sing in an alto." Erik said calmly, waving away Carlotta with a flick of his wrist.

Carlotta's mouth opened to make what Erik assumed were more protests to this change of events, but he turned and stalked off to the piano before she had a chance to say a word.

Once he had seated himself comfortably, he looked over to the teenagers with raised eyebrows.

"Well, are we going to start practice, or are you going to stand around like a bunch of mannequins?" he asked with an edge to his voice.

To his approval, the four jumped from their spots and moved towards him.

"I think for this week Christine will need a score to sing from," Erik said, "however, the rest of you should know your songs by now."

As the practice dragged on, Erik was pleased to see that he wasn't the only one who thought Christine's voice was amazing, not that he had ever doubted her ability, but it was nice to see the others react to it the way he had.

The other three singers, even Carlotta, had stared at Christine in amazement when she had first started singing. In fact, the group song had turned into a solo for Christine accidentally since everyone else had stopped to listen.

In time, and after a few harsh words of _encouragement _from Erik, the others were paying attention to their own music instead of Christine's. It turned out to be one of the best practices they had gone through so far, and Erik had no doubt that it had everything to do with Christine.

The only problem Erik saw with Christine the entire night, was her lack of confidence. She always looked up to him when she was singing as if asking him if she was doing alright.

When practice was over, Erik stood from the piano and said, "Christine, would you please stay for a minute?"

Christine looked as if she had been expecting this. She walked over after the other students had left.

"You hated it didn't you, I was awful." Christine said, her eyes downcast.

Erik couldn't believe his ears. How could she think she was awful when it was clear she had been the best singer in the room?

"Christine, there is nothing awful about your singing. You did even better than I thought you would do, and that's saying something." Erik said, trying to lift the girls spirits.

Christine didn't seem to be completely consoled, but it had helped a little.

"Let me ask you something. Why are you convinced that you are a bad singer?" Erik asked gently.

Christine seemed a little surprised by the question. "Oh, I don't know really. My mother used to sing to me all the time, and I would join in with her whenever I knew the words, but I just never thought that I was that good. Besides, it just seems so weird to be pulled from ballet which I have done my whole life, to sing, which I have never really thought about doing."

Erik could understand. She had been doing so well in something completely different, but was now being told that she was perfect for something else. It was probably pretty disconcerting.

"When was the last time that you sang with your mother?" Erik asked, figuring that it must have been a while ago for her to have such little confidence.

Erik instantly regretted the question when he saw Christine noticeably stiffen. In fact, her whole face had turned white, and her body was as rigid as a board.

"Years ago," she whispered. She looked up at Erik with distant eyes and cleared her throat.

"Both of my parents died several years ago in a car crash." she said very quietly.

Erik felt like smacking himself over the head repeatedly with the piano. How could he have been so stupid as to bring up a painful memory like this for her? He should have read the rest of her file, screw the consequences.

He felt like pulling her into a hug and squeezing away the memories, but he didn't want to alarm her. Instead he sat down on the piano bench with a heavy feeling in the pit of his stomach.

"I'm so sorry Christine. I understand how it feels, I lost both of my parents early in my life." _If you count them leaving me as losing them... "_Would you like to talk about it?" he asked, patting the seat next to him.

Erik could see the immediate hesitation in Christine's eyes. It was obvious she didn't talk about this often, if ever. Maybe that was what she needed though, to talk about it.

Something Erik said must have changed Christine's mind though, because she slowly inched forward and sat on the seat.

Erik was alarmed when he heard her sniffle, but she seemed determined not to cry, and soon she was telling him everything.

Erik listened to her explain her childhood, and how lucky she had been growing up. She told Erik all about her ballet training, and how devoted her parents were to teaching her, as well as taking care of her.

Erik heard stories of the holidays they spent together, the vacations they took, anything and everything that Christine thought of and said, Erik listened to.

Eventually, Erik listened to the story of how Christine had opened the door around two weeks after she had turned twelve, and found a policeman standing there, waiting to take her to the scene of a car crash on the outskirts of town.

Her parents had left her on her own for a few hours to go out a buy a new piano, unfortunately, they were crashed into by a drunk driver. The driver's car was a very old and unstable model with many loose wires and cords, and it had burst into flame after the impact. Her parents car caught flame shortly after.

It was at this point that Christine stopped. Erik realized that for her to say any more would make her relive memories she worked hard to repress.

Erik's heart had broken over and over again as Christine had told her story. He couldn't believe how much she had been through at such a young age. It was almost worse than his own past, and that was saying something.

He was amazed at the strength she possessed. Not once during her whole narrative had she broken down and cried, although Erik saw tears at the surface of her eyes many times. He wouldn't have blamed her at all for crying, in fact, he had been close to tears himself at one point, but she had remained strong.

Erik didn't bother to stop himself as he pulled her into a hug, and rocked her back and forth to soothe her. What she needed right now was to know that someone was watching out for her, but this was the best way he could convey that.

After several minutes of him calming her, Christine seemed to relax. She pulled away and smiled shyly.

"I'm sorry to have broken down like this. Thank you for listening, you could have stopped me anytime." she said quietly.

"I wouldn't have stopped you. Christine, you have been through a lot, and sometimes the best way to move on from things is to talk about it. You can talk to me anytime you need to, in fact, I hope you will." Erik said with a small, rare smile on his face.

The two stood up from the bench, shaky after spending so long sitting on it.

Christine glanced at the clock and jumped a little when she noticed it was 11:30.

"I had better go if I'm going to be any good at all tomorrow," Christine said, "Goodnight Mr. Destler."

"Christine, after everything tonight, I think you can call me Erik." he said firmly.

Christine blushed slightly with embarrassment. "Oh, right, well then, goodnight Erik. And thanks again," she said as a second thought over her shoulder as she walked down the aisle and out of the building.

"Goodnight Christine," Erik said under his breath after she had left.

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**Author's Note: **So please review and tell me what you think about it! Otherwise I won't know how interested people are in the story, or how many people want the next chapter.


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